Bandit trap



M. AND Y. W. CHAMBERS.

BANDIT TRAP.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 21,1920.

Patente lSept. '5, 1922.

2 2 HEETS-SHEET 2.

Patented Sept, 5, 1922.

prairies rarest arms,

MACK CHAMBERS A-ND YANCY W. CHAMBERS, OF ST. LOUIS, ILLINOIS.

zsannrr Tsar.

Application filed. June 2-1; 1920. Serial No. 390,436.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, MACK CHAMBERS and YaNoY 7V; Cleanliness; citizens ofthe United States, residing at the city of East St. Louis, in thecounty of St. Clair and State of Illinois have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Bandit Traps, of which the following is a specification.

This invention is a trap for bandits who have entered a bank or similar place." Essentially, it consists of a quickly operable closure for a door. I

In the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification, in which like numbers of referrence denote like parts wherever the occur, v

Figure 1 is a front elevation of an entrance to a building showing the door closed and this device in inactive position:

Figure 2 is an elevation showingthe means for releasing this device'so that it can operate; a

Figure 8 is a side elevation showing the method of operation of the weights;

Figure 4 illustates part of Figure 3 in a different elevation; v

Figure 5 is a front elevation of the means for allowing the weights to fall 5- Figure 6 is view on the line 6-6 in Figure 52, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows; and

Figure '7 illustrates the weights after they have fallen and, set in operation the burglar alarm.

Whether the door 1 be normally open or closed, the doorway is at all times controllable by the flexible curtain 2 made, preferably. of hard steel or other tough material difficult to cut or break. As shown in the drawings, it may be composedof interwoven chains, or it may consist of steel fabric like woven chainmail.

The upper part of curtain 2 is attached to cross-piece 3, which also will preferably be made of hard steel or other tough material not easily cut or broken. g

By eyelets a, or other suitable means, cables 5 will be attached to cross piece 3, the said cables 5 being also preferably made of hard steel or other material not easily cut or broken, but sheathed in grooves 6 and running over sheaths or pulleys 7, being flexible for that purpose.

Cables 5 are attached to weights 8 by a Catch that is easily released by handle 9 (the details of the said catch not shown in the drawings).

The weights 8 normally rest on shelves'lO, borne by shaft 11; When released from this normal position, as hereinafterdescribed, shelves 10 move to the position shown in dotted linesin Figure 3, thus allowing the weights 8 to drop through floor 12 to the position in the basementshown in Figure 7 where, byany suitable connecting means (not shown in the drawings), the said weights (or one of them) cause a contact between the leaf 13 and the contact point 14 thus sounding the alarm 15 in the nearest police station or in the office of the chief being of police or at any other suitable point or plurality of places. i I I The weights 8 are provided with catches 16 that prevent their being raised. until the .catch 16 has been released from the pawl 17. The weights 8 will usually be so heavy that one bandit alone couldnot, by pulling on thecurtain 2 or crosspiece 3, raise the weights to allow thedescent of curtain 2; but, in case several bandits were in the party, their combined strength and weight would not be sufficient to overcome the catch 16 and thepawl 17. The details of this retaining device may be varied and, in lieu of catch 16 and pawl 17 a spring catch of any desired kind may be'used. When the weights 8 descend to the position shown in Figure 7, their pull on the cables 5 raises the curtain 2 so as entirely to cover the doorway and prevent egress there from. A guard, for whom a chair 18 is provided, is stationed in the strongrooin 19, which may be protected by armor 20, if desired. This room is so located at any desired point that the guard is continuously able to see such parts of the bankfioor as will enable him to see or recognize bandits either as soon as they enter or as soon as they draw their weapons or make other signs of felonious purpose. I

As soon as the guard in room 19 notices the presence of a bandit or bandits in the bank or other place, he turns handle 21 until the same retracts pin 22 out of fork 23 in such manner as to leave tongue 24 free to be moved to the position shown in dotted lines in Figure 5. Then he operates lever 25 pivoted at 26 on arm 27, thereby forcing tongue 24; out of engagement with fork 28 and to approximately the position denoted by dotted lines in Figure 5. This allows shaft 11 to rotate, which it does immediately under the impulse of weights 8 on shelf or shelves 10 fixed to shaft 11. The descent of weights 8 pulls upon the cables 5 and raises the curtain 2 so as to cover the entrance in such manner that the bandit or bandits cannot escape. This gives the guard an opportunity to shoot at them or hold them prison ers in the bank until the arrival of police or other aid.

The bank or similar place can be so constructed if desired, as to have only one entrance protected by this invention, or, if necessary, each of a plurality of entrances may be thus protected.

The members 93 and 27 may be construct ed either as forks or arms. a

When the police oiliicers or the like arrive after this trap has been sprung, they will enter the basement where the parts denoted in Figure 7 are locatedand will oaerate handle 9 to release the cables 5 from weights 8, thus allowing the curtain 2 to drop an to permit entrance of a force into tl banlt.

l-liavin e; thus described this invention, we hereby reserve the benefit of all changes in form, arrangement, order, and use of parts,

0 as it is evident that many minor changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of this inventlon or the scope of the following claims:

We claim:

1. in combination with a wall opening and a flexible closure therefor normally disposed beneath the opening, a shaft rotatably arranged across the opening and equipped with normally inert weighted cables one end of each of which is in connection with the closure, means engaged with one end of said shaft to hold the same from movement, and mechanism to release said means and permit rotation of the shaft and correspondingly operate the weighted cables for urging .aid closure across the opening.

2. In combination with an automatic clo sure for openings, comprising a rotatable shaft arranged above the opening, cables en gag ed with the closure and extending above the shaft, shelves carried bv the shaft,

weights engaged with the cables and normal y resting;- upon the shelves, of a movable arin pivotally mounted upon one end of the shaft, a bifurcated fitting for receiving the arm to prevent rotation of the shaft, a ioching pin carried by the fitting for holding the arm in place, and manually operable mcans for releasing the pin and arm to permit rotation of the shaft whereby to displace the weights from the shelves for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof we hereunto our signatures.

MACK CHAMBERS.

YANCY lV. CHAMBERS. 

